Most young people today are obsessed with fame and imitating celebrities. What are your views?
Now, it’s your turn! Try planning an outline for the following topics:
On the other hand, there are topics which are not suited for such a binary approach. Consider questions such as:
Give yourself 10 minutes to do a proper planning. It’s useful to approach the issue at hand by exploring its significance and relevance in different spheres and domains : Education, Ethics or Morals, Technology, Law etc.
Instead of giving 3 different points from an education perspective, why not broaden your scope and look at the issue from not just an educational perspective, but also a technological perspective and an ethical perspective?
This is what makes for a matured, holistic response.
Let’s use the following topic as an example:
Young people changing the world for the better | Young people changing the world for the better |
Education] youth advocates are helping to make education available to girls in less developed countries | [Politics] many youths are politically apathetic |
[Environment] youths are advocating for leaders to change environmental policies | Environment] youths are the primary consumers of fast fashion, which depletes valuable natural resources. |
[Technology] young people are driving social media advancements | [Technology] the younger generation is abusing technology. |
If you run out of ideas, you can also examine two sides of a coin in a single domain. For example, you’ll see that in the example, that for the technological sphere, there are instances of youths making and not changing the world for the better.
Now that the brainstorming is done, let’s put pen to paper and start writing!
You can ask yourself these questions to help you with your intro:
Simply answer these questions + include your thesis. Voila, you have a solid introduction!
Young people are often described as the changemakers of society, the future leaders, and the hope of our world. From advocating for the environment to spearheading social justice causes, the young people of today undoubtedly have the potential to change our world for the better. Having said that, one must question if this potential is somewhat overshadowed by charges of laziness, selfishness, irresponsibility et. cetera that are often levelled, sometimes legitimately I might add, against the younger generation. In this essay, I assess if the actions of today’s youths truly, on balance, lead us to a brighter future by exploring the impact they are making in the domains of education, environment, and technology. |
Students, you must have heard of the PEEL method by now. We introduce the POINT in the first sentence, ELABORATE on the point, then substantiate with EVIDENCE or EXAMPLES , and finally, we round it all off by LINKING back to the point.
It sounds easy enough, doesn’t it?
Each body paragraph should only discuss one main idea , and only one! Introduce the main idea in your topic sentence (the first sentence of your body paragraph), not after you’ve given your example or when you’re wrapping up the paragraph.
A good topic sentence is straightforward and clear .
Here is an example of a coherent and concise topic sentence:
After you have crafted your topic sentence, it’s time to elaborate on your main point. A well-developed body paragraph elaborates by delving deeper into the main point and substantiating with relevant examples or evidence.
For our point on “education”, consider asking and answering the following questions:
a. Your essay must not be example-driven ! It must always be point-driven.
b. Remember to make the link from your examples/ evidence back to your topic sentence. This illustrates the relevance and strength of your evidence and reinforces your main point.
For our example, a coherent body paragraph could look like this:
[ ] In the sphere of education, youth activists are making positive changes by advocating to make education available to girls in less developed societies. [ ] It is because of their efforts that young women formerly deprived of education, due to reasons like patriarchal mindsets, are now able to access learning. [ ] A notable example is the Pakistani activist, Malala Yousafzai, who began her activism by bravely speaking out against the Taliban’s ban on education for girls. Her story did much to raise awareness about the existing barriers to education. She also co-founded the Malala Fund, which advocates for policy changes to prioritize girls’ education globally. Partnering with UNESCO, Malala’s fund has helped over 5,000 girls in countries like Egypt and Tanzania gain access to education. [ ] By giving these girls an education and helping them out of the poverty cycle, activists like Malala are helping to raise global literacy rates and reduce problems associated with poverty. Society gets a chance to benefit from what these young women can contribute to the workforce. [ ] It is clear the tireless efforts of these activists have made significant impact in the education domain. |
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Many students just reiterate the points in conclusion. But that is… you guessed it, boring. Last impression lasts! You want to provide an insight to this issue to demonstrate your maturity of thought. Apart from summarising your points, link your conclusion back to the introduction so that your essay comes a full circle. You can also use a quote or thought-provoking question for readers to make their own conclusion.
Check out this conclusion:I conclude by pointing out that it is unfair to generalise all young people; in every generation, there will be individuals who give that generation a bad name and those who, as this question suggests, make the world a better place. As shown in this essay, many youths in this generation are attempting to make an impact in different segments of society. But whether the efforts of these young trailblazers are, on balance, bettering the world is still a matter of debate. Furthermore, whether these efforts ultimately result in lasting positive changes depends not just on young people, but also on global leaders and international organisations. So perhaps the real question we should be asking is this: how can we, and not just the young people, work together to change this world for the better? |
Students, this is how you tackle a discursive essay. Try applying these tips to one of the topics above!
How to write argumentative essays.
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Discursive essay – description.
A discursive essay is a form of critical essay that attempts to provide the reader with a balanced argument on a topic, supported by evidence. It requires critical thinking, as well as sound and valid arguments (see Chapter 25) that acknowledge and analyse arguments both for and against any given topic, plus discursive essay writing appeals to reason, not emotions or opinions. While it may draw some tentative conclusions, based on evidence, the main aim of a discursive essay is to inform the reader of the key arguments and allow them to arrive at their own conclusion.
The writer needs to research the topic thoroughly to present more than one perspective and should check their own biases and assumptions through critical reflection (see Chapter 30).
Unlike persuasive writing, the writer does not need to have knowledge of the audience, though should write using academic tone and language (see Chapter 20).
A basic guide to choosing an assignment topic is available in Chapter 23, however choosing a topic for a discursive essay means considering more than one perspective. Not only do you need to find information about the topic via academic sources, you need to be able to construct a worthwhile discussion, moving from idea to idea. Therefore, more forward planning is required. The following are decisions that need to be considered when choosing a discursive essay topic:
It is only through complete forward planning about the shape and content of your essay that you may be able to choose the topic that best suits your interests, academic ability and time management. Consider how you will approach the overall project, not only the next step.
When completing a library search for online peer reviewed journal articles, do not forget to use Boolean Operators to refine or narrow your search field. Standard Boolean Operators are (capitalized) AND, OR and NOT. While using OR will expand your search, AND and NOT will reduce the scope of your search. For example, if I want information on ageism and care giving, but I only want it to relate to the elderly, I might use the following to search a database: ageism AND care NOT children. Remember to keep track of your search strings (like the one just used) and then you’ll know what worked and what didn’t as you come and go from your academic research.
The UQ Library provides an excellent step-by-step guide to searching databases:
Searching in databases – Library – University of Queensland (uq.edu.au)
Did you know that you can also link the UQ Library to Google Scholar? This link tells you how:
Google Scholar – Library – University of Queensland (uq.edu.au)
The concept of a thesis statement was introduced in Chapter 21. The information below relates specifically to a discursive essay thesis statement.
As noted in the introduction to this chapter, the discursive essay should not take a stance and therefore the thesis statement must also impartially indicate more than one perspective. The goal is to present both sides of an argument equally and allow the reader to make an informed and well-reasoned choice after providing supporting evidence for each side of the argument.
Sample thesis statements: Solar energy is a cost -effective solution to burning fossil fuels for electricity , however lower income families cannot afford the installation costs .
Some studies indicate that teacher comments written in red may have no effect on students’ emotions , however other studies suggest that seeing red ink on papers could cause some students unnecessary stress. [1]
According to social justice principles, education should be available to all , yet historically, the intellectually and physically impaired may have been exempt from participation due to their supposed inability to learn. [2]
This is where your pros and cons list comes into play. For each pro, or positive statement you make, about your topic, create an equivalent con, or negative statement and this will enable you to arrive at two opposing assertions – the claim and counter claim.
While there may be multiple arguments or perspectives related to your essay topic, it is important that you match each claim with a counter-claim. This applies to the thesis statement and each supporting argument within the body paragraphs of the essay.
It is not just a matter of agreeing or disagreeing. A neutral tone is crucial. Do not include positive or negative leading statements, such as “It is undeniable that…” or “One should not accept the view that…”. You are NOT attempting to persuade the reader to choose one viewpoint over another.
Leading statements / language will be discussed further, in class, within term three of the Academic English course.
NOTE: Please do not confuse the words ‘claim’ and ‘counter-claim’ with moral or value judgements about right/wrong, good/bad, successful/unsuccessful, or the like. The term ‘claim’ simply refers to the first position or argument you put forward (whether for or against), and ‘counter-claim’ is the alternate position or argument.
In a discursive essay the goal is to present both sides equally and then draw some tentative conclusions based on the evidence presented.
Use previous chapters to explore your chosen topic through concept mapping (Chapter 18) and essay outlining (Chapter 19), with one variance; you must include your proposed claims and counter claims in your proposed paragraph structures. What follows is a generic model for a discursive essay. The following Chapter 27 will examine this in further details.
The paragraphs are continuous; the dot-points are only meant to indicate content.
Introduction
Body Paragraphs X 3 (Elaboration and evidence will be more than one sentence, though the topic, claim and counter claim should be succinct)
Mirror the introduction. The essay outline should have stated the plan for the essay – “This essay will discuss…”, therefore the conclusion should identify that this has been fulfilled, “This essay has discussed…”, plus summarise the controlling ideas and key arguments. ONLY draw tentative conclusions BOTH for and against, allowing the reader to make up their own mind about the topic. Also remember to re-state the thesis in the conclusion. If it is part of the marking criteria, you should also include a recommendation or prediction about the future use or cost/benefit of the chosen topic/concept.
A word of warning, many students fall into the generic realm of stating that there should be further research on their topic or in the field of study. This is a gross statement of the obvious as all academia is ongoing. Try to be more practical with your recommendations and also think about who would instigate them and where the funding might come from.
This chapter gives an overview of what a discursive essay is and a few things to consider when choosing your topic. It also provides a generic outline for a discursive essay structure. The following chapter examines the structure in further detail.
researched, reliable, written by academics and published by reputable publishers; often, but not always peer reviewed
assertion, maintain as fact
The term ‘claim’ simply refers to the first position or argument you put forward (whether for or against), and ‘counter-claim’ is the alternate position or argument.
Academic Writing Skills Copyright © 2021 by Patricia Williamson is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.
500+ words essay on social media.
Social media is a tool that is becoming quite popular these days because of its user-friendly features. Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and more are giving people a chance to connect with each other across distances. In other words, the whole world is at our fingertips all thanks to social media. The youth is especially one of the most dominant users of social media. All this makes you wonder that something so powerful and with such a massive reach cannot be all good. Like how there are always two sides to a coin, the same goes for social media. Subsequently, different people have different opinions on this debatable topic. So, in this essay on Social Media, we will see the advantages and disadvantages of social media.
When we look at the positive aspect of social media, we find numerous advantages. The most important being a great device for education . All the information one requires is just a click away. Students can educate themselves on various topics using social media.
Moreover, live lectures are now possible because of social media. You can attend a lecture happening in America while sitting in India.
Furthermore, as more and more people are distancing themselves from newspapers, they are depending on social media for news. You are always updated on the latest happenings of the world through it. A person becomes more socially aware of the issues of the world.
In addition, it strengthens bonds with your loved ones. Distance is not a barrier anymore because of social media. For instance, you can easily communicate with your friends and relatives overseas.
Most importantly, it also provides a great platform for young budding artists to showcase their talent for free. You can get great opportunities for employment through social media too.
Another advantage definitely benefits companies who wish to promote their brands. Social media has become a hub for advertising and offers you great opportunities for connecting with the customer.
Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas
Despite having such unique advantages, social media is considered to be one of the most harmful elements of society. If the use of social media is not monitored, it can lead to grave consequences.
Thus, the sharing on social media especially by children must be monitored at all times. Next up is the addition of social media which is quite common amongst the youth.
This addiction hampers with the academic performance of a student as they waste their time on social media instead of studying. Social media also creates communal rifts. Fake news is spread with the use of it, which poisons the mind of peace-loving citizens.
In short, surely social media has both advantages and disadvantages. But, it all depends on the user at the end. The youth must particularly create a balance between their academic performances, physical activities, and social media. Excess use of anything is harmful and the same thing applies to social media. Therefore, we must strive to live a satisfying life with the right balance.
Q.1 Is social media beneficial? If yes, then how?
A.1 Social media is quite beneficial. Social Media offers information, news, educational material, a platform for talented youth and brands.
Q.2 What is a disadvantage of Social Media?
A.2 Social media invades your privacy. It makes you addicted and causes health problems. It also results in cyberbullying and scams as well as communal hatred.
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IMAGES
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2 pages / 694 words. While social media platforms offer numerous benefits, such as facilitating communication and information sharing, there is an increasing concern about the negative impact of social media on our mental health, relationships, and overall well-being. This essay aims to critically analyze the ways in which social...
• social media • the Internet • online learning 2. Choose one topic from the list above that you find interesting, and use the Internet to research it in English, e.g. social media. This topic will be the subject you will write about in your essay today. Essay title: The impact of [your topic] on society today. • Make notes in English on
urther investigation of how adolescents' varied digital media experiences relate to well-being.Indeed, ado. escents' social media experiences are influenced by the nature of their networked interactions. Elevated Facebook-related appearance exposure, though not overall Facebook use, is correlated with weight dis.
Discourses can be analysed by ta king into consideration three s teps: production, form. and reception. Beyond the steps we should consider when dealing with the n ew statement forms, the most ...
This essay will examine both the arguments for and against whether social media is good for society, and put forward the proposal that it is beneficial for society. For the purpose of this paper, social networking sites (SNS), social media sites (SMS), and social networks (SN) will be used inter-changeably but will carry the same meaning. There ...
Discursive (adj) [dis-ker-siv]: talking or writing about things that are not highly organized. moving from topic to topic without order. passing aimlessly from one topic to another. SYNONYMS: rambling, digressive, erratic, long-winded. Think of discursive as a BLEND of expository and argumentative because it uses elements from both:
FINDINGS Data/information wholeness When it comes to social media and online environment discursive analysis in general, the working corpora wholeness is an extremely important criterion to consider. A complete perspective cannot be spoken of as long as the language composed of written and spoken words (videos, lives) is simply "extracted ...
From another angle there is an emerging literature which foregrounds discursive practice as the central focus of discourse analysis in Social Media (Jones, Chik, and Hafner 2015, Barton and Lee 2013, Norris and Jones 2005) following from the discourse-in-action approach of Scollon (2001) and Scollon and Scollon (2004).The approach distinguishes ...
discursive essay - Free download as Word Doc (.doc / .docx), PDF File (.pdf), Text File (.txt) or read online for free. The document discusses how social media has transformed communication and the sharing of information. It provides examples of how platforms like Skype and Zoom allow people to instantly connect worldwide. Social media also democratizes the sharing of opinions as anyone can ...
How social media discourses organize communication online: a multi-level discursive analysis of tensions and contradictions in teens' online experiences October 2019 Communication Quarterly 67(2 ...
In this paper, I discuss some prominent features of our use of social media and what I think are its harms. My paper has three main parts. In the first part, I use a dialogical framework to argue that much of the discursive activity online is manifested as an ethically impoverished other-directedness and interactivity.
1. Introduction: Hook: Begin with a captivating hook or attention-grabbing statement to engage the reader's interest. Contextualization: Provide a brief overview of the topic and its relevance, setting the stage for the discussion. Thesis Statement: Clearly state the main argument or the purpose of the essay.
Your essay is structured in a manner that argues towards this stand. When writing an argumentative essay, your goal is to persuade, to convince the reader to be in support of your stand. Discursive: you are not required to take an explicit stand on the issue. In other words, you do not need to pick a side. You may choose to pick a side; that ...
Social media mental health discourse is also shown to be quite diverse and more stigma-neutral than such discourse in traditional media. Daily tweet volumes (left: real data, right: log).
Planning your Discursive Essay - Writing Assessment for Nat. 4 or Nat. 5. You should take your topic and create a title for your discursive essay. Your title should be either: A question. A statement followed by the word 'Discuss'. For example: Topic - Social Media.
In a larger frame, this is about arriving at a viable account of the discursive impact of social media, e.g. how certain D-discourses like populism are normalised as both discursive content in politics and a preferred communicative style (KhosraviNik, Citation 2017b, Citation 2019). In a context where traditions in mass media's impact on ...
Discursive Essay - Description. A discursive essay is a form of critical essay that attempts to provide the reader with a balanced argument on a topic, supported by evidence. It requires critical thinking, as well as sound and valid arguments (see Chapter 25) that acknowledge and analyse arguments both for and against any given topic, plus ...
1.2 Communicative strategies. The purpose of social and communicative interaction between individuals is exchange of information and sense. The form of interaction depends on the motives and objectives, time, nature of social roles, mindset, and culture. The process of communication is structured and follows certain schemes and scenarios ...
Since media became an integral part of social life in the late 19th century, politicians have traditionally used all available tools and mechanisms to get access to media. Gradually a trend of hybridization ... discursive devices are under special focus. The next two papers deal with the role of images in new media discourse.
500+ Words Essay on Social Media. Social media is a tool that is becoming quite popular these days because of its user-friendly features. Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and more are giving people a chance to connect with each other across distances. In other words, the whole world is at our fingertips all thanks to ...
Technology has advanced over the past decades, rapidly influencing today's social culture. Social media is still developing into many different forms. Those forms can include Smartphone's, computers, laptops, television, and tablets. Whichever the object is, it has also become a form of communication in many different ways. So much of ...
Discursive essay on social and pedagogical topics contains valid analytical and communicative potential and thus induces and gives reasons to new prospective thoughts on the problem, namely, its further processing at a higher level of complexity. First of all, we proceed from the standpoint that discursive essay is one of the most effective ...
Discursive essay (3) - Free download as Word Doc (.doc / .docx), PDF File (.pdf), Text File (.txt) or read online for free.